The present invention relates to a rotary combustion engine construction, and more particularly to a rotary combustion engine construction that can be fabricated in a small size and/or light weight for saving fuel without compromising the structural strength.
During the history of the automotive engines, many proposals have been made to replace the conventional reciprocating motion of a piston with a rotary motion of a piston. It was not until the late 1950s that rotary piston engine theory began to be successfully translated into practice, as exemplified by the Wankel engine. Even so the only company now making a production Wankel engined car is the Japanese manufacturer of Mazda cars, although engines operating on the Wankel principle may be found in other transportation and industrial applications. Although the Wankel engine has the claimed advantages that it occupies less space and offers a reduction in weight relative to its power output, it compromises the combustion efficiency due to the moving combustion space of this type of engine lacking compactness.
Another type of rotary engine is the gas-turbine engine, which has been successfully fitted in airplanes, helicopters, and electric generating systems. As to this type of engine, it operates mostly at a constant speed, so that it does not perform well in automotive vehicles. One reason for this unsuitable performance is a noticeable delay in acceleration after the driver has depressed the throttle. Also, the power-turbine section, which gets very hot and runs at a very high speed, is made of expensive materials. This makes the gas-turbine engine cost much more than a comparable piston engine in the fabrication, and as a result there is no gas-turbine commercially available.
In view of the foregoing, the applicant has invented a rotary combustion engine construction, which has the advantage of space and/or weight reduction without compromising the combustion efficiency as existing in the Wankel engine.